How To Clean Lead on Chimney

Hi,

My chimneys were scudded this week before plastering a wet dash finish. The problem I have is that the lead at the bottom of the chimney going onto the roof is covered in sand/cement. A brush was used to brush of the lumps in it but there is still a trace of sand/cement on it. How can I get rid of this? Is there some sort of solvent or cleaner that will clean the lead? I don't want to take the risk of the sand/cement mix running down the completed roof and destroying the slates!!

What ever you clean it off with you need to go up there with a cloth & patination oil & oil up the lead again, otherwise you will see white streaks on the lead running down along the slate in a few months time

If you can't get your hands on patination then linseed oil will do. I've even heard of WD-40 being used. Best of all is some masking tape and polythene - applied before the wet dash!

Thanks for the advice, much appreciated!